Trojans are basking in it, darling

The pro prospect from the big conference team referred to his squad as this year’s darling team. And I’m buying it.

“We’re this year’s George Mason,” USC forward Nick Young said in the glow of the Trojans’ win over Texas on Sunday.

Why not? In an NCAA tournament Sweet 16 field that finds itself without big underdogs (i.e., a double-digit seeding), the Trojans have emerged as the out-of-nowhere story, even if they’re from the middle of Los Angeles.

Forget the dominance of the school’s football team, or the basketball tradition of the Pacific 10 Conference. This is as much about an attitude as anything else, and the Trojans sure look the part.

When I think of George Mason’s shocking Final Four run last year, I think of Lamar Butler smiling throughout the news conferences, the same smile I see on the face of Young and Gabe Pruitt.

At one point Sunday, out of the blue, Young thought of the team’s trip to the Meadowlands for the next round and blurted out, “New Jersey. Never been there. I’m excited about that.”

Yep, they’re so new to this they can even get excited about a trip to East Rutherford.

The enthusiasm didn’t wane in the 48 hours after beating Texas. As he shot after practice Tuesday at the Galen Center, Young looked and sounded like a kid on the playground.

“Call me Gilbert Arenas,” he said after making a series of deep three-pointers. Then he tried to duplicate Kobe Bryant’s ridiculous turnaround three-pointer from the corner in Friday night’s 65-point game. (Young made the shot twice.)

Pruitt smiles even while he brings the ball up the court during games.

“I’m just having fun out there when I’m playing,” Pruitt said.

“This is new for us. Normally, we’re here watching it.”

The good thing is the players are enjoying their time in the spotlight without the coach trying to step in front of them on the stage. Make no mistake, Tim Floyd is a major reason the team has advanced this far. And while he’s doing his expected round of radio interviews, he isn’t grabbing the glory. When Lodrick Stewart said, “Tim Floyd will carry this program to the next level,” Floyd said, “I didn’t make a basket tonight.” When the players were asked about Floyd’s defensive plan that was so effective against Kevin Durant and Texas, Floyd cut them off to say “It wasn’t my plan, it was [assistant coach] Phil Johnson’s plan.”

Floyd has set the tone for how this team will play. It starts with effort and execution on defense. It continues with a balanced offense that keeps everyone on the court involved.

Now the entire campus is getting into it. People yell to players -- even the backups -- out of passing cars. One student told Pruitt that, thanks to the basketball team, this has been the best year he’s had in college.

(The alumni are representing too. After wondering in Monday’s column where the fans were, I’m discovering them in my e-mail inbox.)

They also have a bit of that emotional Loyola Marymount 1990 team as they play for the honor of a fallen teammate, even if Ryan Francis’ shooting death doesn’t have quite the immediate drama of Hank Gathers collapsing on the court during the conference tournament.

For a team that doesn’t have much of a hook, the Francis story has been a tempting tale for the national media, which means his name keeps popping up in news conferences. The best way to honor the dead is to remember them, and every time a question comes up and the players share their memories and the inspiration they get from Francis (who would have turned 20 on Saturday), it keeps a little part of him alive.

This USC story also reminds me of George Mason in that the Trojans are given little chance to beat the top-seeded team in their region, North Carolina. The Tar Heels appear to have too much talent and depth, in addition to a great coach in Roy Williams. Then again, I thought there was no way George Mason could beat Connecticut in the regional final last season, and we remember who cut down the nets afterward.

We do know the Trojans won’t beat themselves; North Carolina will have to take it from them.

Whenever this story ends, there won’t be a sequel next season when O.J. Mayo arrives and a Sweet 16 appearance will be a minimum requirement, not a pleasant surprise. After Mayo’s performance in a high school championship game over the weekend, when he tossed the ball off the backboard, dunked, then threw the ball in the stands in a 41-point blowout, any team with him won’t be considered cute and cuddly.

For now, though, enjoy the smiles. The Trojans sure enjoy wearing them.

“We want to be the underdogs,” Young said. “We’re not trying to get bigheaded and have a letdown.”

J.A. Adande can be reached at j.a.adande@latimes.com. To read previous columns by Adande, go to latimes.com/adande.